Another successful Gannet transition

“It’s good to see the programme keeps evolving for the better and it’s great to see customers getting involved with that evolution.” –Rob Lendjer, Maintenance Controller at LifeFlight Australia, Queensland.

With a fleet of about 16 rotary and four fixed-wing aircraft, LifeFlight Australia operates a round-the-clock life-saving service across Queensland, as well as providing a variety of services to other organisations.

LifeFlight boasts more than 40 engineers, working at 11 operational bases across Queensland, Victoria, Tasmania and Singapore, and so a reliable, efficient and flexible maintenance software system is critical to ensuring fleet readiness at the drop-of-a-hat.

LifeFlight Australia first adopted Lundin’s Gannet 2 early in 2015, following the withdrawal of the SaSiMS system, which had been in use by a number of Australian operators.

In 2022, LifeFlight Maintenance Controller Rob Lendjer attended the Gannet user conference in Bucharest, with colleagues. “This was our introduction to Gannet 3,” recalls Lendjer. Lundin software developer Cosmin Palade then travelled to LifeFlight’s Archerfield’s primary maintenance base in southern Queensland in October 2022 to upgrade the systems to Gannet 3.

“Since then, we have been happily operating Gannet 3,”continues Lendjer. “It does everything we need it to do.”

Gannet offers the best possible fit with LifeFlight, given the variety of aircraft types and the number of different bases – a reality that has evolved to reflect Queensland’s vast area, encompassing all terrains from harsh outback and jungle to the highly urbanised east coast.

“We’re looking forward to going even further with it, including eTechlog and digital signatures in the future. It’s good to see the programme keeps evolving for the better and it’s great to see customers getting involved with that evolution, for example the way Norwegian Police worked on the creation and testing of eTechlog,” says Lendjer.

In remoter areas, emergency medical treatment can be 100kms away and LifeFlight has helped more than 81,000 people across four decades of rapid response critical care. The service is based on a not-for-profit model, with funding from the Queensland state government, public donations and corporate sponsorship, including the Royal Automobile Club of Queensland, which has long-standing naming rights for the RACQ LifeFlight Rescue Service.

In addition to its Archerfield base, LifeFlight has line helicopter maintenance bases at Brisbane Airport, Toowoomba, Roma, Sunshine Coast, Bundaberg and Townsville, and at Melbourne, where LifeFlight supports a helicopter contract for Victorian Police. LifeFlight also has hangarage in Tasmania and jet maintenance at Singapore.

Of LifeFlight’s 11-strong AW139 fleet, five operate for LifeFlight Australia, three for Victoria Police and three on general charter work. Additionally, there are three Bell 412s, one Airbus BK117 and one AS350 Eurocopter. Four Bombardier Challenger jets provide the air ambulance service, with missions having extended as far as Kenya and Hawaii, and with a base in Singapore.

Such is LifeFlight’s reputation for operational expertise and excellence, that Queensland Health has for some years contracted the company for the recruitment, training and supply of doctors and nurses to the state’s other aero-medical providers, including the Royal Flying Doctor Service and the government’s own QGAir rescue helicopter fleet.

The company’s commitment to quality training across all facets of its business is embodied in the LifeFlight Training Academy, where instructors pass on their current, real-world experience in aeromedicine to medics and flight crews.

The majority of LifeFlight’s licensed engineers are on staff and all functions except heavy jet maintenance are carried out in-house.

• The Gannet maintenance software system is designed by Lundin Software. Its key features include easy one-stop management of mixed rotary and fixed wing fleets from desktop or hand-held device, and a “traffic light” system to ensure regulatory compliance at all times. Lundin Software’s programming and support functions are based in Bucharest and the company also has offices in the Faroe Islands.